Turnover table for glass sheets



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TURNOVER TABLE FOR GLASS SHEETS Filed May 25, 1935 I 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. I WILL/HM OWEN ATTORNEYS.

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Patented Jan. 28, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE William Owen, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application May 25, 1935, Serial No. 23,437

4 Claims.

The invention relates to a turnover table for glass sheets designed particularly for use in the handling of sheets of plate glass in connection with grinding and polishing operations. In such operations, it is necessary to pick the plates up with a vacuum frame, deposit them upon a turnover device of some kind which turns them upside down, and then picks them up again in such reversed position by the vacuum frame and transfer them to a grinding table, the complete cycle being illustrated and described in the patent to H. S. Heichert No. 1,519,526, which disclosed one form of turnover table or device. The object of the present invention is to provide an improved turnover table of simple, compact construction which will handle the glass plates without danger of breakage and which lends itself to the reception and removal of the glass sheets by the vacuum frame without the requirement of any particular skill or care on the part of the operator. One embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a side elevation of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is an end view, which also shows to the rear of the apparatus one of the grinding tables and the vacuum frame for carrying the glass plates to and from the apparatus. Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section through a part of the apparatus. Fig. 4 is a partial plan View. And Fig. 5 is a section on the line V-V of Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, the base upon which the turnover frame is mounted comprises a pair of I-beams I, I mounted upon the channels 2, 2 and carrying intermediate their ends the standards 3, 3, upon which the turnover frame is pivoted. The turnover frame consists of a pair of side bars 4, 4 in the form of castings secured together at their ends by a pair of cross ties 5, 5, also preferably in the form of castings. The side bars are provided at their central portions with a pair of trunnions 6, 6, which constitute the pivots of the frame, such trunnions being mounted in the bearings I, l at the upper ends of the standards 3, 3. Means are provided for rotating the frame through an angle of 180 deg. in the form of the synchronous motors 8, 8 which rotate the trunnions through suitable reduction gearing. Such gearing includes a pair of worm wheels in the casings 9, 9 keyed to the trunnions and worms in the casings. Shown in the background of Fig. 2 is one of the grinding tables A from which the glass plates are transferred to the turnover table and the vacuum frame B which transfers the plates to and from the turnover table.

In order to support the glass sheets during the turnover operation, a pair of sheet supporting members II, I2 are employed in the frame, such members being of flexible construction and made up of the pairs of chains I3 and I4 connected to the transverse slats I5. The slats are preferably in the form of metal tubes of rectangular cross section, as indicated in Fig. 3. They are connected at their ends to the chains by means of the U-shaped members I6, as indicated in Figs. 4 and 5, and are provided on their faces which are next to the glass sheet with strips of felt I! to avoid scratching the glass. The lower pair of chains I4 are mounted in guideways in the arms 4, such guideways consisting of a section I8 and a section I811 (Figs. 3 and 5) in parallel connected by the curved portion I9. Similarly the pairs of chains I3 which lie above the glass sheet are mounted in guideways, each of which consists of a section 20 and a section 2I (Figs. 3 and 5) in parallel connected at their ends by the curved portion 22. At the end of each of the chains I3 and I4 is a pivoted oper-- ating handle 23 for moving the chains. This handle is normally pressed to the left (Fig. 5) by means of the spring 24, and when the parts are in the position indicated in Figs. 3, 4 and 5, the handle is engaged by a notched lug 25 carried by the inner face of the arm 4. This serves to maintain the chains in the position shown in Fig. 3 during the rotating movement of the frame.

In using the frame, and before a glass sheet is applied thereto, the glass supporting member I I is moved so that the chains constituting parts of such member lie in the sections 2| of its guideways, while the supporting member I2 occupies the position shown in Fig. 3. A glass sheet 26 is now brought to position over the device by means of the vacuum frame and placed upon the supporting member I2. The supporting member I I is now moved back to the position shown in Fig. 3, so that the glass sheet is supported upon both sides by the members II and I2.

On operating the motors 8, the frame is swung through an angle of deg., thus reversing the position of the glass sheet and bringing the supporting member I2 uppermost. This member is now moved so that its chains lie in the guideway section ISa, thus exposing the upper side of the glass sheet. The vacuum frame may now remove the glass sheet and the turnover device is ready for the reception of another glass sheet which is turned over by proceeding in a manner similar to that above described.

What I claim isi 1. In combination, a turnover frame for glass sheets mounted for rotation about a horizontal axis intermediate its ends'through an angle of 180 degrees, a pair of sheet supporting members mounted for movement on the frame and arranged when in sheet supporting position to lie in opposition parallel to each other and closely adjacent, and guide means for each member whereby the member may be 'moved edgewise from sheet supporting position to a position in which it no longer lies above the glass sheet so as to permit the removal of the sheet.

2. In combination, a turnover frame for glass sheets mounted for rotation'about a horizontal axis intermediate its ends through an angle of 180 degrees, a pair of flexible sheet supporting members mounted for movement in the frame and arranged when in sheet sup-porting position to lie in opposition parallel to each other and closely adjacent, and guideways and a receiving space for each member in the frame arranged so that the member may be moved edgewise from sheet supporting position into said space so that it no longer lies above the glass sheet, thus permitting the removal of the sheet.

3. In combination, a turnover frame for glass sheets mounted for rotation about a horizontal axis through an angle of 180 degrees, a pair of flexible sheet supporting members mounted for movement in the frame and arranged when in sheet supporting position to lie in opposition parallel to each other and closely adjacent, and guideways for said members in the frame arranged so that each member may be moved from its sheet supporting position to a position back of the sheet supporting position of the other member.

4. In combination, a turnover frame for glass sheets mounted for rotation about a'horizontal axis through an angle of 180 degrees, a pair of flexible sheet Supporting members, each consisting of a pair of spaced chains with connecting slats therebetween mounted for movement in the frame and arranged when in sheet supporting position to lie in opposition parallel to each other and closely adjacent, andjguideways for the chains in the ends of the frame arranged so that each member may be moved from its sheet'supporting position to a position back of the sheet supporting position of the other member.

' WILLIAM OWEN. 

